QuintilesIMS analyzed the approaches of companies that
launched products for the first
time between 2006 and 2015 to
understand their funding/com-mercialization strategies.1 Here are
the results of this analysis and the
implications for the three types
of players involved: the research
companies, their potential large
pharma commercialization partners, and venture capitalists.

THE NATURE OF FIRST-TIMEPRODUCTS

In recent years, there’s been a shift
in the market towards more innovative, premium-priced specialty drugs. The share of biologics
among all FDA-approved New
Molecular Entities (NMEs) increased from 14 percent in 2004 to

27 percent in 2015, and the share
of orphan drugs increased from 29
percent in 2010 to 47 percent in

2015.

If venture-funding trends are an
indication of what is to come, the
shift towards biologics and orphan
drugs is likely to continue. The
share of investment in biologics
increased from 27 percent in 2004
to 50 percent in 2013, reaching $38
billion.

Interestingly, the rate of first-time
launches is increasing. From 2006
to 2015, 105 companies launched
a product for the first time. How-

Go it Alone or Partner? The EmergingPharmaco Choice

The emerging pharmaceutical and biotech industry is thriving. but precommercial companies must make a fundamental decision at some point in the
drug development process: take the product to market on our own or to partner
with an established large pharmaceutical company? This decision is typically
made as developers approach the end of phase II clinical trials, but can take place
at any time—even after the drug has launched.